Atlanta Hawks fans are among the most stressed in the NBA
The Atlanta Hawks have been one of the media darlings for their work last season and this offseason. They went deeper in the playoffs than anyone expected, drafted very well, and addressed their remaining needs free agency. But, as the old adage goes, you can’t please all of the people all of the time.
To that end, a new study from BetUS shows Hawks fans are the sixth-most stressed base in the entire league.
So, are they paranoid or just aware of how fleeting success can be in this league?
The Atlanta Hawks have very passionate (and stressed out) fans
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It isn’t paranoia, well, at least not unwarranted paranoia. We went over the history of teams that lost the Eastern Conference Finals in the last 20 years.
Only seven of them have made it back the following year and just two advanced to the NBA Finals the following year. Those aren’t great odds though it has happened as recently as 2018.
There is also the threat of regression.
The Hawks not only face the possibility of their own players regressing to the pack, but they also have the prospect of so many teams in the East improving this offseason.
Atlanta was among them. But so were several others in their division.
Working in the Hawks favor, perhaps more than anything else, is how banged up they were while making their run to the ECF. They had their best wing defenders in De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish for a total of 49 regular games last season and two separate playoff series.
Two of their best offensive threats in Trae Young and Bogdan Bogdanovic were also hobbled.
Health permitting, we should also see growth from several Hawks. That includes Reddish who remains part of the plan despite trade rumors and Kevin Huerter who is in a contract season.
We’d also expect the development of and rapport between Young and John Collins to continue after both were signed to very lucrative deals in the early stages of the offseason. Young netted up to $207 million while Collins could get up to $125 million. Both have options in the final year.
Next. Atlanta Hawks: When does John Collins sit in the 2017 top-ten redraft. dark
With so much to be positive about, it might be surprising to see Hawks fans are among the most stressed. But when you look at the history they are facing, it is understandable. And given they hadn’t been that deep in the postseason since 2015, no one wants to take it for granted. Still, we could all apparently stand to enjoy this a little more.